Rare DS Development Good News For Microsoft
I've heard many sound justifications for why Rare has been publishing games for the Nintendo DS even though the studio was acquired by Microsoft five years ago, but it's still been one of those niggling industry questions that would always remain a bit of a mystery until I heard the horse's mouth explain its ass, so to speak - but now that the GM of Microsoft Game Studios, Phil Spencer, has gone on record I'm feeling more satisfied:
“Rare has a history in making handheld games, and titles for Nintendo platforms. When we acquired the studio that expertise was there and the team was there. As Microsoft we had a discussion – do we want to build that expertise? We decided yes."
“Not so much because we need to support Nintendo – their platform will do fine without us – but because it is important for us to build that experience as a publisher and game developer and understand what it means to build lightweight, maybe shorter session experiences, and maintain that design innovation.”
I'm curious to know the implications of Microsoft learning to create portable games: red herring or harbinger of handhelds to come?
Moreover, Spencer pointed out how DS development might one day benefit Xbox Live:
…So for us it was about looking at what state of the art game design might be in future and asking if we want to be part of that, regardless of what platform it’s on. We said yes, because we have the expertise in the studio today and its an expertise that we want to nurture. One of the ways to do that was build DS games. Rare has also built Live Arcade games, and I think in future you will see them both those platforms and generally innovate in general.”
Spencer: DS development can aid our design skills [Developmag]
[via Xboxic]
tiny dancer
Posted to Hot Stuff, Miscellany on 16 November 2007
Other stuff like this: micoroft, nintendo ds, rare, xbox live
